Versace Clothing: Marketing Strategy
Marketing is vital in all types of organizations and in order to be successful, there is the need to incorporate the marketing mix. The marketing mix elements are product, price, place and promotion. The product is main attraction of customer and I will look at the product features that make it stand out from its competitors. I have to look at place, i.e. how the product will reach the consumers. Good strategies for products should also consider the price.
Product Service/Features
The Company products & services is the selling of men’s clothes that have already been manufactured. The main products which are being sold by this company in the world market include men’s clothe, women’s wears and kids wears. Men’s wears include belts briefcases clothing cufflinks and tie clips shirt dresses, jewelry, shoes, swimming kit, under wears wallet sun glasses, watch and many others. Women clothes include belts, clothing, handbags, purses, accessories, jewelry shoes, underwear sunglasses, swimming kid, wallets, watches, and many others. The kids wears includes, toys, cloths, accessories, belts, shoes, swim wears, watches and many others. These products, are designed to cover all market segments of almost all income levels and the form of packaging that the product enjoys give the customer a motivation to come back to the company to buy the product. Therefore, through product mix of this company they are able to create attention of customers get new customers who patronizes business buy and consumes the product. The product takes all the needs of the family from the age of one month to the age of 100 years. This is because of product mix decision that they have employed. They have more than 1000 items in store to sale to the customers and these products are in different lines. Men’s clothe, women’s sloth, shoes to mention a few of the product lines employed by this company.
They have stocked high quality products with well known brands that has given the company good image not only in the US but in the world market. The product are displayed for purchase of customers. the store has build a packaging and labeling of their product in a such a manner that the customer have the confidence of choosing the product they want this is done through self service and making the customer to have a consumer affluence that is willing to pay more for the convenience of the service appearance of the service dependence of the company goods and the prestige of packing. Self service can be seen clearly form their online shop and the physical store. This has given the company a good image thus creating a good brand name.
In developing the brand policy, they have grouped individual items or precuts into different products lines based on the quality feature and design this has given arise to a difference pricing strategy.
price
Pricing is one of the best decision that a firm can make on order to remain competitive in the market. The company has priced her products based on quality and market segments. A high quality product will have high price the same way a medium quality product will have a medium price while a low quality product will have a low price attached to it. the company has segmented the markets while setting their prices this is aimed at making profits at the same time capture the market. The main aim of setting the selling price is able that stimulates market growth. At the same time be able to remain competitive and make profits. They have considered the factors that affect market segment while coming up with the pricing strategy. Some of the factor they have considered in setting various pricing strategy include the value attached to the products as viewed by specific market segment. Availability of a substitute in certain segment the amount spends in production of the product, the quality of the product fixed cost and inventory being held in store. All in all the pricing strategy is above the fixed cost that is after considering the contribution of a certain product.
What it means they have different prices for different customers form different segment. The Us market are charged a cost plus margin with no sales tax. In Europe goods are sold to them at price plus profit plus Value Added Tax plus a shipping cost of six stirring bounds for UK while other countries in Europe plus shipping cost of 19 USA dollars. In other parts of the world the product is sold to them at a price without custom or taxes but is inclusive of 19 US dollars. This price that are charged by this company the costumers in various segment.
Being a market leader they maintain their prices and profit margin. This when (a) it would lose too much profit if reduced its produce; (b) it would not lose much market share; and (c) it could regain market share when necessary. This price maintenance is dangerous because competitors may take the market and gets more confident as its sales increase.
Promotion
Promotional mix is important in this case because good advertising, personal selling, sales promotion and publicity skills should be employed to enhance the sales for clams and expand the market. This will ensure that the bundle of benefits a customer gets from a product serve the purpose for which he bought it. This will also assist the company to alert customers to be aware of the product i.e. in advertising. There are many ways of advertising. Communication that can be used on clams are visual adverts- newspapers, magazines, e.t.c. other ways are audio-visual- T.V, videos and cinemas and audio where advertisers use the radio. Another very good form of promotion to use is via the internet where clams products can be placed online for customers to be aware of and purchase. This company exploits all this avenues in marketing their products.
Good promotions aimed directly at the customers can also enhance sales just like direct mails, fliers or posters that can keep the customer updated about the product. For this case of clams where the product is sold in stores and distributors selling is essential but there is need to employ effective sales people to sell the product and explain the important product feature.
Advertising:-The company advertises in the local press (newspapers, mail, magazines) commercial television, billboards, Use of Travel agencies, brochure, Word of mouth (personal selling),Out-door hoarding, transport advertising by the taxi (cabs) and Celebrity endorsements. Otherwise to give a selected celebrity who frequents Las Vegas and Canada free product, for them to endorse the company’s product to the public.
There will also be a sales promotion which will involve; Temporary price-reduction to attract new consumers and also retain the old consumers that the company would have captured.
Publicity: The Company entails, getting involved with the community developments by offering .With this social responsibility, the company is able to be boosted in terms of publicity of the company, hence created more awareness.
Place of distribution/positioning
The position of the company is located at a great cities as well in the online shop where there is always influx of human flow and hence ensuring there is a ready target group. The company is located in the busiest streets in major and while other stores are situated in a mall which is a bonus point to the introduction and success of the company products.
Competition
The company faces direct and indirect competition from its competitors in the country and outside the company. The business serves customers all over the world and in the world there are more stores thus having a stiff competition.
The size of the business is for medium and high class in relation to its competitors. The location and size of the business is of great benefit than those of the competitors. Due to the quality product that the business offers wider product. Hence the business covers a wider market.
The business being able to cover a wider market and sells a wider range of products apart from men’s clothes to its customers.
Conclusion and recommendation
Today we are living in the era of globalization. online shops have become important and a marketing and distribution tool of most companies and there has been an increasingly important research field everywhere in the world. The same which is being employed to reach a wider world market.
The company should look for international markets which have not been opened and open shop. The fast growing economies like India and China provides a good place for the company to open shop since more than half of the population is not access to internet.
References
Armstrong G. & Kotler P. (2007). Consumer Markets: Influences on consumer behavior, Principles of Marketing.
Kotler, P. (2005) Principles of Marketing. New York. Melbourne Press
Schaik J.L., (2002); The Task of Marketing Management; J.L. van Schaik (Pity) ltd
Wickham p (2001) strategic entrepreneurship 2nd Edition, financial Times. Prentice hall.
Winer, R.S. (2007). Marketing Management, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River, NJ.
——– Versace Clothing available at http://www.raffaello-network.com/english/fashion-product-list/380/versace-clothing-mens.html accessed on 23/07/2008 at 4.30pm +3GMT
